Re: Wayside
Dear Listers,
just couldnt resist any longer to reflect on my experience with Wayside (and
many others of less note so will stick to Wayside).. First contact with WS.came
20+yrs.ago..
As a new home owner(and a newcomer to Northern gardening) with almost an acre
to landscape,short on experience ,Wayside's catalog helped me every step of the
way.Most often I used it as a tool of reference,learning(what plant needs
what,etc.)
Color photos,Latin and common names,zones included,AND free of charge, it was my
first serious interest in the lesser seen,known plant, much beyond the everyday,
commonplace..I have frustrated many a Nurseryman with inquiries of 'do you stock
such 'n such' or 'can you get such and such'?One even responded 'WHERE do you
hear about THESE plants'?..I still have a love for the 'exotic' and had I not
seen Waysides catalog lo these many years ago who knows perhaps I would not know
the love of gardening that I now have.
The catalog is still great(yes I now know that many of the plants are
'staged'and somewhat pricey)but no matter,they are a credit to the biz as they
do replace without question your failures and theirs and are courteous while
doing so.I will also tribute them with introducing many unknowns to this country
over the years.I still place an occasional order with them sometimes because its
something that I cant resist other times its a sense of loyalty.
The Web has given us a whole new world of plants and small nurserymen who can
provide(but not always will replace) them to us and I too do the majority of my
orders with them but I thank Wayside and providence for opening the door to me
to this wonderful world just packed with plants that I want to see and try for
myself.May they long remain to 'open the doors for the many that will follow'..
Connie
